The Worst Summer of His Life
by cap red
Summary: Oneshot. It wasn't just dumbskills, but lessons learnt long ago, in the worst summer of his life.


AN: This is my first foray into the world of Kim Possible. I wrote this because I was thinking that Ron surviving so many missions can't all be dumb luck, and that he must have gained his skills from somewhere. Since he is my favourite character and I always want him to get the recognition he deserves, I decided to write this.

Disclaimer: I don't own Kim Possible or any of the characters portrayed in this piece of fiction. Disney does.

* * *

He always said it was the worst summer of his life, and it was. Yet years later, he finally remembered something that he had never noticed before. It may have been the worst summer of his life, but it was also the summer that saved his life.

People always wondered how such a bumbling idiot could survive on the missions with Kim. He didn't appear to have any talents accept for dumb luck, or dumb skill as he would call it. It was that camp that did it. In that camp, through every hardship he learnt an invaluable skill.

_How to dodge_

He spent the day in avoidance; Avoiding fruit, arrows or just the ordinary punches of other children. When you compare a few weeks of continuous dodging to a few moments of it, even if the stakes are slightly higher, you realise that the lasers or spinning tops of doom are nothing to that camp.

_Situational Awareness_

All the times he dodged right into poison ivy or some creature like a raccoon, meant he learnt to consider his surroundings. All the times he was running and ran straight into an angry councillor, meant that when he started sneaking around layers, he took in the entirety of a room's layout probably faster even then Kim. There was a reason Kim always was the one to take on Shego, whilst he was the distraction or dismantled whatever machine Drakken was building.

_Use What You Have_

This is the most obvious one. His arts and crafts translated into an ability to build things at a moment's notice. He didn't get to use this one often as Wade had normally thought of every eventuality, but sometimes he'd get lucky. This also translated into the building of doomsday devices but he tried not to think about that. He tried not to think of how close he always was to the villains he fought.

_The Ability to go Unnoticed_

This isn't just stealth, and being quiet, but being in a room full of people and being invisible. He made people think he was insignificant. It had its downside. No one ever remembered his name or gave him credit for the missions, but within the missions themselves... He could be noisy and still people didn't care to look at him, not until it was too late anyway.

_How to Face His Fears_

All that time building fears also meant he learnt how to deal with them. He showed this every time he did what he had to do no matter what. Jumping out of an airplane- No big, facing monkeys- Ok, big, but he became stronger because of it, and gained a new asset. People called Kim brave and she was, but the thing is, Kim doesn't really fear anything and because of that she takes risks. That's the next thing that he learnt.

_Don't Rush In_

This is strange, because most would think it was Kim who did this and that he always rushed into dangerous situations. This isn't true. He always knew what was in his capabilities and what not. When Kim was rushing in, he was subtly calling for backup, or working to even the odds. A blown up lair always did the trick, or being a distraction.

_Self Sacrifice_

That's what being a distraction is. Sacrificing yourself for others.

_First Aid_

Actually he knew a lot more than first aid. He knew how to set broken bones, how to deal with burns, bullet wounds and so much more, but he learnt the basics of it in that summer. Before he had learnt the other lessons, he got hurt. He got hurt a lot, and when the nurse had got fed up with seeing him and treating him, he took it on himself to learn how to look after himself.

_How to Deal With Pain_

Most of the camp he was in some sort of pain and he had no choice but to get used to it or create more pain. When he was injured on missions if he stopped he would be dead and so he had to carry on despite everything else.

_Don't Rely on Anyone Else_

People thought the relied on Kim, but he knew that it was Kim that relied on him. All those calls home, all those unanswered calls had left their mark. He learnt that he could only depend on himself. He learnt that people didn't care to help him. He learnt independence.

People say that Kim saves the world on a regular basis. People don't understand why she brings anyone else with her. People say that he must be a hindrance. People don't realise that Kim may have her different styles of Kung Fu and her cheerleading, but Ron – Ron has everything else.


End file.
